Simple Soup

A hot bowl of soup when you feel a cold coming on is so soothing. As my friend, Viktorija would say, "Use whatever veggies you have." or "Relax"! Take her advice- I know I should!

In French cooking, carrots, celery, and onion minced and mixed together can be the main part of your broth- Mirepoix if you will. If you are lucky enough to have leftover chicken on hand, or a whole, uncooked chicken, you can use it to make the stock. If not, simply chop equal parts carrots, onions, and celery (1 cup of each if you need exact measurements) and throw it all into a pot with some olive oil coating the bottom (1 tsp or so). Stir, on medium heat, until the onions are fragrant. The veggies will not be 'done' yet, but go ahead and add 4 cups (1 liter) of boiling water or (preferably) broth or stock. I use bullion cubes to make my broth when I'm lazy, or if I'm industrious, I create stock from scratch by boiling a whole chicken with a bunch of veggies, straining this completely, stripping the meat off the chicken bones and then using the strained broth at this point in the process (add the cooked chicken pieces at the last minute, if desired).  Bring the mixture to a boil, stirring occasionally and then time the addition of any other veggies you like, such as broccoli (takes 5 minutes to cook), cauliflower (3 minutes), sweet peppers or herbs (add at the last minute). If you are adding potatoes, I recommend doing so when you saute the carrots, celery, and onion in the first step, or right after you bring your mixture to a boil. If you are crazy about veggies not being over cooked, you can also start your stock/broth boiling, add potatoes, cook for 15 minutes, then add the carrots, celery, and onion and cook for another 10 to 15 minutes. However, I really prefer the onions sauteed a bit with the olive oil(and a pinch of salt) at the start, so that they get a bit caramelized.

Serve, piping hot, with Parmesan cheese or a swirl of extra virgin olive oil on the top along side some homemade French bread. If you want your soup to be a noodle soup you can add the pasta (preferably something small like ditalini) as soon as your mixture has come to a boil after you've added the broth or stock or water. If you only use boiling water you will definitely need to salt your soup!

Chicken Divan - without the can of soup!

My grandma's recipe for Chicken Divan goes like this: place thawed frozen broccoli and cooked chicken in a casserole dish. Combine a can of cream of mushroom soup, some spices, mayo, milk and pour the mixture over the chicken&broccoli. Heat in an oven until hot and sprinkle with paprika. Easy, but don't you wonder: what is in that can of soup?  You don't want to know. Even if the ingredients are organic and fabulous, a recent study found BPA in the can liners of kids foods- never mind non-kid marketed soup!

Since I was creeped out by the ingredients in canned soup, I developed my own recipe. If you've never made a roux before, do not fear, it is simple and can be 'fixed' with lots of whisking, even if it seems hopelessly lumpy. I usually use a pre-cooked chicken bought at the market, and strip the meat off the bone the night before, putting the meat in the fridge overnight. If you are feeling decadent you can substitute heavy cream for half the milk. If you are feeling vegetarian you can substitute tofu for the chicken. Cube tofu and fry in a tiny bit of oil, so each side is a bit crispy before using.

In the Netherlands, you can find Worchester sauce at Jumbo in Veldhoven, and my friend tells me the AH XL has it. The American Goodies store in Amsterdam also has it. Don't leave this out, as it imparts a 'kick' to the flavor of the dish.

Chicken Divan

Ingredients:

·       A large bunch of broccoli, cut into bite sized pieces, cooked aldente (about 350 g)

·       Cooked chicken (2 or 3 breasts) or a combination of dark & light meat cut into pieces

·        2 cups chicken broth (500ml)

·       ¼ cup unsalted butter, cut into chunks (60g)

·       1/3 cup flour (60g)

·       ½ cup mayonnaise (125ml)

·       ¾ cup milk (187 ml)

·       1 tsp curry powder   (2g)

·       ½ tsp cinnamon

·       1 ½ Tbsp Worchester sauce (24g)

·       2 packed cups grated gruyere cheese (200g)

·       Paprika to sprinkle on top

·       Optional, but recommended: 1 Tbsp lemon juice & 3 Tbsp dry white wine & 1/3 cup grated Parmesan

Prepare chicken broth with boiling water and a bullion cube, or open your favorite box broth. In a large saucepan, melt the butter over low heat, add the flour and cook the mixture (roux), stirring with a whisk for 2 minutes. Slowly add the broth, stirring (mixture will clump, just keep whisking) and bring the mixture to a boil and stir often for approx 10 minutes.  You now have gravy. Fold the mayonnaise, milk, curry powder, cinnamon, Worchester sauce, Gruyere cheese and if using the lemon juice, wine and Parmesan cheese into the mixture and stir until the cheese melts.

Using a 2 quart casserole dish (or a 9x13 baking pan), spread the cooked chicken pieces, top with the cooked broccoli, and pour the gravy mixture over the top. Sprinkle with paprika. Bake in a 350 degree oven for about 20 minutes. Can be kept in a 175 degree oven for up to an hour. Just before serving, place under the broil if desired.